Tank-sounder.



SEARCH ROOM;

P. F. McDONNELL, J. BRUNNER & T. THOMPSON.

TANK SOUNDER. APPLICATION man mm. 1914. 1,172,541, Patented Feb. 22,1916.

2 SvHEETS-SHEET I.

STI'IIUTE MISSING f? A? A? UNITE STATES PATENT onruon.

PATRICK F. MCDONNELL, JOHN BRUNNER, AND THOMAS THOMPSON. F CLEVELAND,'

OHIO.

TANK-SOUNDIER.

Application filed March 24, 1914. Serial No. 826,997.

T 0 all whom it m ay concern.

Be it kn "'n that we, PATRICK F. MCDON- XBLL, Jon BRUNXER, and T norms Tirol sox, citizc of the United States, residing at Cleveland, in the county of Cuyahoga,

State of Ohio, have invented certain new This invention relates to ships and has.

special reference to a device for determining the height of water in any compartment of the ship.

The invention is primarily desirable to be used. in connection with ships having aninner and an outer skin between which skins extend a series of partitions to form water tanks such as in ships employing water ballast. It is to be understood, however, that the invention may be employed for use in connection with any vessel, no matter whether the same is divided into compartments or provided with tanks or not, although the invention will be described as specifically applied to a. water ballasted ship.

These soundings must be reported regularly to the pilot house and to the engine room of the vessel and the object of the present invention is to enable both pilot and engineer to determine the depth of water in any given tank or compartment at any min 3.5 ute without leaving the station and without making it necessary to send a man to sound that particular tank. A second object of the invention is to provide means by which the engineer and pilot can obtain a knowledge of the amount of water being let into a tank or pumped out of a tank in ballasting or lightening the shi l ith the above and other objects in view the invention consists in general of certain novel details of constructlon and combination of parts hereinafter fully described, illustrated in the accompanying drawings, and specifically claimed.

i In the accompanying drawings, like characters of reference indicate like parts in the several views, and Figure 1 IS a diagrammatic plan of a vessel showing the arran ement of tanks and sounding devices. Fig. 2 is a section on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1. Fig.

3 is an enlarged detail view of the sounding rod and contacts. Fig. i is an enlarged detail view of the front of the engine room indicator, the same indicator being for the pilot house. Fig. 5 is a back view of such an indicator. Fig. 6 is a diagrammatic view showing the sounding rod, a portion of an indicator, ard the electric devices connected therewith.

In the present embodiment of the invention there is disclosed a vessel or ship having an outer skin 10 and an inner skin 11 between which are arranged partitions 12 which serve to divide the space between the inner and outer skins into a series of tanks 13. Secured to the top of each of these tanks and extending down into the bottom thereof is a rod 14: of insulating material whcreon is arranged a series of metal disks 15, the disks at the bottom being spaced at much less distance than the disks at the top. For instance the disks at the bottom may be spaced one inch apart for the first foot then three inches for the next foot and four inches for the next foot and say six inches for several feet until the top of the tank is approached when the stations may be raised to one foot or even eighteen inches. From each of these disks extends a wire 16 which wires are con nected together to form a cable 17 which runs to the engine room 19, each wire being insulated from the others and being led from the cable to a special indicator 20 which will be hereinafter described. This cable is also branched to provide a branch 21 which extends to the pilot house, the latter being not deemed necessary. here to be indicated but the wires of which extend to like indicators in the pilot house. Each of these indicators is provided with an insulating disk or base 22 whereon are secured a series of contacts 23 and the respective wires 18 are connected with respective contacts 23, there being provided a series of symbols 24 each indicating the depth of water on the rod at respective contact. These contacts may also be provided with a second scale 25 consisting of consecutive numbers as clearly shown in the front view of the indicator. Journaled centrally of the indicator is a. shaft 26 whereon is mounted a spring pointer 27 which is arranged to engage the successive contacts 23 as the shaft is rotated. In order to rotate this shaft there is provided a hand wheel 27'. Extending from Specification of Letters Patent. Patented Feb. 22, 1916.

the shaft 26 is a wire 28 which leads to a light 29. From the light 29 a wire 30 leads to the bell 31 and from this hell 2. wire 32 leads to a battery 33. This battery 33 has one pole grounded through a wire 34. to the skin of the ship.

The rod 14 in each tank is located sufiL ciently close to themetal of the tank that. the battery 33 will be suflicicntly strong to cause a current to flow from any disk 15 through the water in the tank to the skin of the ship provided such disk be placed in connection with the battery while it is under water.

The arrangement in the pilot house is exactly similar to that described for the arrangement in the engine room and it will be obvious that the engineer may at any time place any disk in electrical communication with the battery by rotating the pointer 27. In operation, therefore, if the engineer desires to determine how much water there is'in a tank he rotates the hand wheel 27 causing the pointer 27 to pass over the respective contacts 23 but when the top or last contact which is immersed has been reached current will flow from the battery 33, through the wire 32, bell 31, wire30, lug 29, wire 28, shaft 26, pointer 27, respective contact 23, cable 17, respective wire 16, disk 15, through the water in the tank to the skin of the ship and thence back through the skin and wire 34 to the battery. This will cause the lamp to light and also ring the bell. If the engineer desires to fill the tanks to a certain point he sets the pointer 27 on the contact 23 indicative of the depth to which he desiresto fill the tank. He can then start his pump or open the sea-cocks for that tank and when the proper depth of waterhas been reached the bell will ring as before and the light will light. If the engineer desires to empty a tank to a certain point he dropped to a. point so efiicient device of the kind described and of 0 the character specified.

It will be obvious that many minor changes may be made in the form and construction of this invention without departing from the material principles thereof.

It is not therefore desired to confine the invention to the exact form herein set forth, but it is wished to include all such as come properly within the scope claimed.

Having thus described the invention, what is claimed as new, is

The combination with a metallic ship; of a rod of insulatin material extending downward into said ship, a series of conducting disks arranged along said rod in Spaced relation to each other, an indicator provided with a circular series of contact points, a wire connecting each of said points with a respective disk, a battery and signal connected in series with the hull of said ship, an arm rotatably mounted on said indicator'and arranged to sweep over the contact point, means to rotate said arm, and an electric connection between said arm and the battery and signal.

In testimony whereof, We aflix our signatures, in the presence of two Witnesses.

PATRICK F. MGDONNELL. JOHN BRUNNER. THOMAS THOMPSON.

Witnesses:

CHARLES GOODRICH, HARRY W. VVELLET.

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